Collaboration Key in Development of ISB’s New Buildings -

(Newswire.net — January 22, 2019) Beijing, Beijing —

With the help of 30 stakeholders and over 300 members of the International School of Beijing (ISB) community, the Facilities Master Plan (FMP) was able to capture and incorporate the ideas, goals, and recommendations of all to build and remodel four facilities.

“This Facility Master Planning design and review process not only looks internally at the facility needs of ISB’s developing programs but it also looks externally to identify the programs and facilities availed to the community of learners at our peer schools around the region,” said Gerrick Monroe, ISB’s CFO.

Consultative Process Helps Develop the FMP

Similar to many established schools, ISB’s FMP is regularly reviewed and updated to ensure the highest quality of learning spaces for the community.

“Regular revisions of ISB’s Facility Master Plan are made to ensure that facility modifications and additions are relevant and vital to the success of our innovative and changing programs and in line with our goals of providing world-class facilities that best meet the educational needs of our dynamic school community.”

This review process takes a long-term view, looking at ISB programs and the facilities required to support them.

“Programs at dynamic schools like ISB require purposefully designed, flexible spaces to best meet the programmatic requirements,” Monroe said.

And with the help of the regular review process and a futuristic look at what the school requires to ensure a world-renowned education, ISB moved forward with the detailed design and permitting processes for these four facility projects in the Spring of 2017. This final function and design of these projects were the result of the work and recommendations of over 20 FMP Committee members, 30 stakeholders, and the voices of over 300 members of the ISB community.

Facilities Serve Student Learning

“Educational spaces on the ISB campus are intended to be creative spaces that provide much more than a standard educational experience,” Monroe said. “As such these spaces should provide for students to actively engage in the ISB learning processes and activities.”

The refresh and remodeling plan for the four facilities includes more visible teaching and learning spaces where the innovative work of students, faculty, and staff is celebrated.

“The refreshed and remodeled ISB classroom spaces will be transformed from the more traditional classroom settings to a revised, visible learning space where solid walls are replaced with large windows that open into community spaces and hallways,” Monroe said.

According to Monroe, flexible learning spaces and creative furniture design work together to transform an educational experience for students, faculty, and staff.

“Flexible spaces allow for seamless changes in the daily programs and activities and are also more easily repurposed to meet the changing programmatic needs of a dynamic learning organization over the long-term.”

FMP Ensures the Highest Standard of Construction

With a continuous, transparent FMP and a collaborative, consultative development process, the new facilities ensure the highest standard of construction.

In order to ensure this, ISB worked with the founding partner of Inclusive Architectural Practice in Beijing, Xiaoyi Ma.

Ma worked closely with ISB teachers, staff, and administrators to design these new spaces.

She brings an area of expertise to the projects she produces. Ma graduated from both Tsinghua University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has extensive design experience in the US and with many schools in China.

ISB has also recruited the help of CBRE’s Senior Project Manager Andrew Jin in the design, plan review, permissions, procurement, and construction management processes of the new spaces.

“Jin’s and CBRE’s experience managing complex construction projects in international settings is valuable to the safety planning and successful completion of these projects,” Monroe said.

And for those worried about student, faculty, and staff disruption on campus, CBRE and the ISB Facilities and Security Departments are in charge of guaranteeing the safety on campus.

“There is clear separation and consistent oversight to keep the community safe and ensure the continuation of a safe environment in support of high-quality education,” Monroe said.